A former film critic, he commenced his filmmaking career with Targets (1968), which he wrote, produced, directed, and acted in. He went on to make a string of other successful movies, including The Last Picture Show (1971), which earned him Academy Award nominations for Best Screenplay and Best Director, What's Up, Doc? (1972), Paper Moon (1973), Mask (1985), and Texasville (1990), a sequel to The Last Picture Show.